Ironwood Electronics recently introduced a new stamped
spring pin socket addressing high performance requirements for testing UART
serial to parallel data convertor, CBT-QFN-7002. The contactor is a stamped
spring pin with 26 gram actuation force per ball and cycle life of 500,000
insertions. The self inductance of the contactor is 0.88 nH, insertion loss
<1 dB at 15.7 GHz and capacitance 0.097 pF. The current capacity of each
contactor is 4 amps at 80°C temperature rise. Socket temperature range is -55
to 180°C. Socket also features a low profile snap lid for ease of operation. It
also has a wave spring with swivel compression plate for vertical force without
distorting device position. The specific configuration of the package to be
tested in the CBT-QFN-7002 is a QFN, 7 x 7 mm, 0.5-mm pitch, 48 positions with
center ground pad. The socket is mounted using supplied hardware on the target
PCB with no soldering, and uses the smallest footprint in the industry. The
smallest footprint allows inductors, resistors, and decoupling capacitors to be
placed very close to the device for impedance tuning. To use, place QFN device
into the socket and close the lid by snapping to the latch. This socket can be
used for quick device screening and data conversion functional test
applications with the most stringent requirements.